Chapter 4 Bound By Ancient Magic

Every step toward the wedding hall made my heart beat faster, and I kept glancing at the corridors, wondering if there was still a chance I could run away before anyone noticed.

Unfortunately, there were guards everywhere.

Of course, there were guards everywhere. This was the Dragon King's palace, not my grandmother's abandoned cottage, where I could disappear whenever I pleased.

By the time we reached the enormous doors of the wedding hall, my palms were damp, and I had to take a deep breath to keep myself from turning around and running in the opposite direction.

Two guards stood on either side of the entrance, their dark armor decorated with golden dragon emblems. When they noticed me approaching, they bowed before pushing the enormous doors open.

The sight that greeted me made me forget my panic for a moment.

The hall had been transformed into something out of a fairy tale. Tall pillars of black stone rose toward the vaulted ceiling, their surfaces carved with dragons whose wings seemed to spread across the walls.

Golden lanterns floated high above the guests without chains or visible supports, casting a warm glow over the polished floor, while delicate strands of glowing flowers hung between the pillars.

At the far end of the hall stood an ancient arch made of silver and gold, its surface covered in intricate carvings of dragons and elves intertwined among flowering vines.

Small crystals had been embedded into the arch, glowing softly as though they held tiny stars inside them.

Beneath it stood the king, dressed in a black ceremonial outfit embroidered with golden dragons, his dark hair neatly arranged and a magnificent golden crown resting on his head.

He looked every bit like the ruler of a kingdom filled with powerful creatures. And unfortunately, he was the man I was about to marry.

The moment I stepped into the hall, the conversations faded, and hundreds of eyes turned toward me.

I swallowed nervously, suddenly far too aware of the heavy gown, the crown on my head, and the fact that everyone was looking at me as though I were the luckiest woman in the world.

I didn't feel lucky. I felt like someone had pushed me into a river and expected me to swim without knowing how.

Music began to fill the hall, played by musicians standing beside the pillars. The melody was unlike anything I had heard before, blending the soft notes of flutes with the deeper sounds of instruments that seemed to vibrate through the floor beneath my feet.

I took my first step forward. Then another.

My eyes remained fixed on the king as I walked down the long aisle, trying not to trip over my gown or let my expression reveal how badly I wanted to escape.

Veydran watched me approach with a smile that seemed far too pleased for someone whose bride looked as though she was walking toward her own execution.

Could he not tell that I didn't want to be here?

When I finally reached him, he extended his hand toward me, and I hesitated for a brief moment before placing mine in his. His fingers closed gently around mine, and he leaned closer.

"You look beautiful," he whispered.

I stared at him, unable to understand how he could say something so casually when he had turned my entire life upside down in less than an hour.

"Thank you," I replied through a forced smile, hoping he would somehow understand that I wasn't in the mood for compliments.

His smile widened, and he turned his attention toward the elderly woman waiting beneath the arch.

She wore a long silver robe decorated with tiny golden scales, and a crystal staff rested in her hand. Her silver hair was braided and pinned at the back of her head, while her eyes held the calm authority of someone who had witnessed countless royal ceremonies.

She was the High Keeper of the Dragon Kingdom, the woman responsible for performing the royal marriage rites.

"Today, beneath the witness of the ancient dragons and the first magic that shaped our kingdoms, we gather to unite two lives and two royal bloodlines," she announced, her voice carrying clearly through the hall.

"Let the skies bear witness, let the mountains remember, and let the ancient magic recognize this union."

The crystals embedded in the arch began to glow brighter, sending delicate ribbons of golden light curling around the pillars. A soft breeze swept through the hall, although every window was closed, and the glowing flowers above us opened one by one, scattering tiny sparks of light into the air.

I watched them drift around us, unable to stop myself from staring. Whatever else I thought about this wedding, I couldn't deny that the magic was beautiful.

The High Keeper raised her staff, and a deep, distant rumble rolled through the hall. For a moment, I wondered if something had gone wrong, but then a magnificent dragon appeared in the enormous enchanted window behind the arch, its golden scales shining beneath the morning sun as it circled the mountain peak.

The guests gasped, and some bowed their heads in reverence.

"The ancient guardians acknowledge the union," the High Keeper declared.

I slowly turned toward Veydran, expecting him to look surprised by the spectacle, but he seemed perfectly comfortable, as though magical dragons appearing during weddings were an ordinary part of his morning routine.

Perhaps they were. I really needed to learn more about dragon traditions, especially if I was going to survive being married to their king.

The High Keeper lowered her staff and looked at Veydran.

"Your Majesty, do you take Eiravelle, Princess of the Elven Kingdom, as your lawful wife, to stand beside you as queen, to share your burdens, and to remain at your side through the changing seasons of your reign?"

"I do," he answered without hesitation, his gaze resting on me.

The High Keeper turned toward me next, and my heart began pounding all over again.

"Princess Eiravelle, do you take Veydran, King of the Dragon Kingdom, as your lawful husband, to stand beside him as queen, to share his burdens, and to remain at his side through the changing seasons of his reign?"

My lips parted, but no words came out.

Everyone was waiting for me to answer. My parents stood among the guests with proud smiles on their faces, my sisters were somewhere in the crowd, and the king was watching me with an expression that suggested he had absolutely no doubt about what I was going to say.

But I didn't want this marriage.

I wanted to go home, return to my grandmother's cottage, and figure out what had gone wrong with my spell. I wanted to wake up tomorrow and discover that the entire situation had been nothing more than a terrible dream.

Instead, I was standing beneath an enchanted arch, wearing a wedding gown, with the Dragon King waiting for me to become his wife.

I swallowed and forced the words out.

"I do."

The answer was barely above a whisper, but the magic surrounding us seemed to carry it through the entire hall.

The crystals flashed, and a thin ribbon of golden light curled around our joined hands before forming a delicate pattern resembling a dragon wrapped around an elf's flowering vine.

The High Keeper smiled as she watched the symbol settle briefly over our hands before fading into tiny sparks.

"Then, by the ancient laws of the Dragon Kingdom and the magic that bears witness to this union, I recognize you as husband and wife. May your bond endure beyond the passing of seasons, and may neither crown nor kingdom divide what has been joined today."

The hall erupted into applause. I barely heard it.

I was too busy staring at the faint warmth lingering in my palm, wondering whether that strange flash of magic meant anything beyond the wedding ceremony.

Before I could examine it further, Veydran turned toward me, his smile still firmly in place.

"You are officially my wife now," he whispered. My stomach dropped.

As if I hadn't already figured that out!

I opened my mouth to remind him that I had never intended for any of this to happen, but he leaned toward me before I could get a single word out.

Then his lips met mine.

My eyes widened in shock, and I froze, my fingers tightening around his hand as the entire hall burst into cheers.

I hadn't expected him to kiss me so suddenly, especially with hundreds of people watching, and for a moment, I forgot how to move or even breathe.

When he finally drew back, he was still smiling at me, looking far too pleased with himself.

I could only stare at him, my mind struggling to catch up with everything that had happened.

A few hours ago, I had been a princess who wanted nothing more than to stay out of the Dragon King's way.

Now I was standing in front of an entire kingdom, wearing his wedding ring and a crown, with everyone celebrating my marriage.

Just like that, I was married. Married to the Dragon King.

And if my suspicions about the spell were correct, I might have just trapped myself in a situation that would be far more difficult to escape than I had ever imagined.